Present for a 4 yr old Tomboy?

It's my son's best friend's birthday next week, and given how well they get along, and the fact her mother is one of my closest friends, it's really important to me to get a present she really likes.

She's already getting a bug finding kit and a worm vivarium (yuk!) from her grandparents. What could I get her? Ideally I'd like something a bit more original than Axtion Man, but just can't seem to think of anything.

ant farm = great, but since she;s already getting a worm vivarium I thought perhaps the parents wouldn't want too many other nasties in the house!

her household already has a full complement of musical instruments, but the geomag wld be great. I have seen it in the shops but there seems to be so many different sets - what would be the best starter set?

starter set geomag I would recommend is just sticks and balls, you can then let her parents spend all the extra monies to build up the set, for a young child of 4 a small set would be perfect, it gets very costly.the panels are a bit more difficult to use as well...
Its fabulous stuff

She's seen the one in Woolworths and has fallen in love with it. Her twin sister wants a really girly frilly pink dressing up dress, Princess and the Pauper or something. Can you tell I'm more like the tomboy

Here are a few other tomboyish ideas - dd got a funny tiger flashlight for Christmas and loves to sit in the dark turning it on/off and making light patterns on the wall/ceiling. Also loves turning it on under the duvet - sort of like a cave! Flashlights are fun for kids.

DD also has a little rucksack on her bicycle (with stabilisers of course), and I've gotten her a plastic drinks thermos to carry in the rucksack. The top of the thermos is a little cup, and she loves stopping for a drink/snack when she's out for a ride.

Other big item at our house for the moment, is an inexpensive cd player (from Argos) with a few kids music cds. She loves being in her room and playing on her own with "her" music on.

Another idea would be a sleeping bag? She can pretend to go camping, make beds for her animals/toys, etc. Even use it for friends.

Last idea is a nylon tent/tunnel. We have a small one. An adult has to set it up, but once done, kids love playing with it - especially when the weather is foul outside.